Moloch (Sleepy Hollow)
Moloch is the overarching antagonist of the FOX television series Sleepy Hollow, serving as primary antagonist of the show's first season and the first half of Season 2 (from Episode 1-11), and a posthumous antagonist in the series' remainder, due to his great posthumous effect on his domain, the Purgatory. As a powerful demon, he is the leader of the Horsemen of the Apocalypse, as well as many other monsters and forms of evil. He is highly considered to be the most vile and most horrifying villains of the series ever, for his utterly diabolical, selfish, hateful, arrogant and corruptible personality. Responsible for sacrifice of numerous innocents (including children), he intends to use human as his pawns and unleash the Apocalypse, bringing about the end of the world. It is revealed that Moloch was one of the leaders of fallen angels during the rebellion in Heaven. His actions were described in John Milton's Paradise Lost. He is also the first of the Seven Disasters which the Witnesses must face. In mythology As a god worshiped by the Phoenicians and Canaanites, Moloch had associations with a particular kind of propitiatory child sacrifice by parents. Moloch figures in the Book of Deuteronomy and in the Book of Leviticus as a forbidden form of idolatry (Leviticus 18:21: "And thou shalt not let any of thy seeds (children) pass through the fire to Moloch"). In the Old Testament, Gehenna was a valley by Jerusalem, where followers of various Baalim and Canaanite gods, including Moloch, sacrificed their children by fire (2 Chr. 28:3, 33:6; Jer. 7:31, 19:2–6). Moloch has been used figuratively in English literature from John Milton's Paradise Lost (1667) to Allen Ginsberg's "Howl" (1955), to refer to a person or thing demanding or requiring a very costly sacrifice. In John Milton's Paradise Lost Psychological description Being the darkest presence in Sleepy Hollow, even far beyond the Headless Horseman, Ancitif, William Howe, Attius Nevins, the Pied Piper, Henry Parrish, Solomon Kent, Gina Lambert, Pandora and Banastre Tarleton, Moloch shows himself as a ruthless and relentless Fallen Angel whose only goal is to unleash the Apocalypse and destroy and subjugate all who live. Unlike most of the villains mentioned above who are either tragic or having reasons/excuses to do their crimes, Moloch's vile is absolutely unreasonable. He merely brings chaos for chaos and nothing more. Trapped in Purgatory, Moloch steadily corrupts humans to act as his servants, including Ichabod Crane's friend Abraham. Abraham becomes the Horseman of Death in return for Moloch promising him Ichabod's beloved Katrina, while Moloch imprisons Katrina in Purgatory. Throughout the years, Moloch turns humans into monsters and orchestrates murder after murder, punishing failure with brutal execution or torture. Moloch then steals Ichabod's son, Jeremy (later known as Henry Parrish), turning him into the Horseman of War and setting him against his parents while informing Henry he is only a servant who should follow his will. Later, even Henry had realized how selfish and ruthless the Demon King truly is, and he was so horrified and disgusted that he ultimaltly ended up killing the demon to save his parents. From everything we know, Moloch is a pure, deliberate evil monster. He seeks to corrupt, destroy, and bring about the End of Days without any costs, much like a Machiavellian dictator. His minions, whoever they are, are all but expendable pawns to him, and he does not suffer fools, being very unforgiving of failure. He's also a liar, who is manipulative, cold-hearted, inhuman, hypocritical and dishonest to the people who trust or need him. Any promises he makes mean nothing as he will break any if it suits him. He will make use of any method possible to meet his ends, no matter how deceitful and underhanded, and cares not how many lives suffer to achieve his goals, unconcerned about whether the acts would plunge humanity into Despair Event Horizon - for he is always there in order to make humanity hopeless, no reason other than that. Powers and Abilities As an extremely powerful demon and the bringer of the apocalypse, Moloch had several powers that were unique to him, which he used to get out of Purgatory and destroy all human beings. *'Supernatural Awareness': Moloch was quite aware of the current situation, and that was the possible reason for him to know Henry's plan to summon Mary Wells as a ghost. *'Spell Casting': Moloch had vast knowledge of magical spells and rituals. He was powerful enough to bring the Apocalypse to Earth. *'Super Stamina' *'Super Strength' *'Super Speed': Moloch could run with great speed, and he could chase Abbie in Purgatory as fast as a quick wind. *'Telekinesis': Moloch is able to move things with his mind. He was able to snap Andy's head. *'Mind Control' *'Astral Projection' *'Teleportation': He could teleport himself from Purgatory into the human world. However, he could not summon the Apocalypse, for he did not reach his full power until he was brought into the world by Henry. *'Demon Creation': He can turn humans into his demonic minions; the famous examples of this being Andy and the first two Horsemen. *'Necromancy': Moloch has the power to raise the dead. He was able to bring Andy back to life as an undead servant and he was also able to raise Jeremy Crane from the grave he was buried in for two centuries. *'Weather Control': Once burning down the first and the second of the four white trees, Moloch could summon thunderstorm and blood hails. Moloch's Purgatory Moloch's Purgatory, also called the World Between Worlds, is a spiritual realm that traps lost, tortured souls. Purgatory seems to act as a prison with Moloch as its warden. Souls that are "trapped in the middle" end up there as they await to go to Heaven or Hell. Although Purgatory is another dimension, it has been demonstrated to utilize contact with the mortal world via dreams or reflections. Purgatory has taken on different appearances through visions. In Ichabod's dream, it was daytime and in the middle of a forest. Presumably, this was to foreshadow where the gateway of Purgatory is located rather than it being a vision of Purgatory itself. In another, it resembled a dark, thundering forest.The third time, Purgatory looked exactly how it did when Abbie and Ichabod entered; a vast forest that lacks sunlight and wandering souls. In order for a mortal to enter Purgatory, they have to be in a spiritual area. An incantation has to be spoken and a portal, that resembles shattered glass in an open space, will open. Temptation are one of Purgatory's many tests, used to distract mortals and keep them in an infinite oblivion. A mortal is capable of overcoming these illusions, thus entering Purgatory. The only way one soul can leave Purgatory is if another takes its place. There is a loophole for this rule, but can only be demonstrated once. Despite this it would seem with Moloch's death many souls have been able to escape Purgatory. Purgatory souls *Katrina Crane (freed) *Abbie Mills (freed) *Abbie and Jenny Mills' lost memory *Andy Brooks *The Golem (escaped) *Orion (escaped) *Solomon Kent (escaped) Others about the Purgatory *In Roman Catholic bibles, Purgatory is a place of suffering, inhabited by souls of sinners who are expiating their sins before going to heaven, while in Sleepy Hollow it is like a hell-like dimension. *Purgatory is also described as a "maze of temptation". *A mortal must not accept food or drinks in Purgatory, or else they will be trapped forever. *Creatures in Purgatory, possibly demons, posses the ability to shapeshift into other people. *Souls, regardless of already being dead, can be killed again. It is unknown if they simply cease to exist all together, or respawn after a certain period of time. *When exiting Purgatory, the body is wildly tossed out. *Witches possess power to trap one's soul in Purgatory. *Angels are also able to be trapped here, if they interfere with the demonic realm. Relationships Henry Parrish/War During the time he was buried alive in his coffin, Henry/Jeremy developed a great hatred towards his parents and desired vengeance. Moloch came to him and offered him the chance to exact revenge as the Horseman of War, and Henry accepted the pact and viewed Moloch as his true father, resenting his real parents. However, Moloch did not return any sentiments to Henry, seeing him only as a soldier to follow his commands, as well as an expendable pawn. His cruelty towards Henry, however, led to his demise when Henry finally saw Moloch for what he was and stabbed the demon with the Sword of Methuselah. Abraham van Brunt/Death As Abraham lay dying, Moloch approached him and offered him Katrina in exchange for becoming the Horseman of Death, which Abraham accepted without question. However, Abraham had no value to Moloch except as a pawn to advance his plans. Conquest/Pestilence It is unsure when Moloch came to this man that became the Horseman of Conquest/Pestilence, but it is possible that this occurred sometime before or after the American Civil War. It is possible that this Horseman was acting under Moloch to spread his plague in order to enter the mortal realm to join up with Death, but was defeated by the Witnesses. He hasn't been seen since. Ichabod Crane Coming Soon! Mills sisters Coming Soon! Katrina Crane Even if Katrina is a bitter enemy of him, Moloch still wants Katrina alive - not for mercy, but for his evil purpose as his "Hellfire shard". While doing this, he does not even considering his promise to Abraham when the Horseman of Death took its form. After all, Moloch is a Prince of Lie who always break his promise. While thinking Abraham's failure, Moloch finally showed his true color by forcing Henry to kill Katrina. Moloch's diabolical attitude towards Katrina has shocked both of the two Horsemen and shaken their loyalties, eventually making Abraham to give out the whereabouts of Moloch to Team Witness, and Moloch's later death under the hands of Henry. Quotes *''Your death is assured, you and the Second Witness. I touched her soul once. Soon, it will be mine forever, then you will give it to me.'' *''YOU DO NOT PLAN. YOU DO NOT THINK FOR YOURSELF! YOU ARE A SOLDIER. A SOLDIER'S DUTY IS TO OBEY!'' *''COME AND SEE...'' *''Rise, Purgatory... Come and see...'' *''YOUR SOUL IS MINE...'' *''He is nothing. You are NOTHING BUT WHAT I MADE YOU. Sacrifice your mother, NOW.'' List of victims This list is incomplete. Throughout the centuries, Moloch and/or his dreaded minions slaughter innocent people or made them suffer forever ever. *The fanatic worship of Moloch had children sacrificing, costing lives of plenty children and making great melancholy throughout numerous families. *Numerous unnamed minions who failed Moloch would be tortured to death, slowly and painfully, with no exception. *Most of the wandering souls in the Purgatory were utterly deformed (most notably a faceless woman and a man with bleeding eyes) and seemed to fear Moloch greatly, hinting Moloch had add tormenting and torture on them. *Roanoke residents: He was responsible for sending the Horseman of Conquest to Roanoke in 1584, causing plague throughout the colony. *Pied Piper's victims: **Numerous unnamed victims **Numerous British soldiers **Lancaster family suffered a lot due to a curse caused by the Piper who took his murder by the hand of Daniel Lancaster as an Freudian excuse. Lancasters had great loss of young girls caused by this, and the curse will took the death of all the other children if the Piper hadn't successfully slaughter his victim. ***Numerous unnamed children ***Beth Lancaster's sister ***Sarah Lancaster and her adoptive brothers (survived) *Abraham van Brunt: *Lachlan Fredericks: *Katrina Crane: *Henry Parrish: *Lori Mills: Moloch sent Gina Lambert to Lori and caused her to suicide. *Ichabod Crane: Within the Team Witness, perhaps Crane had suffered the most due to Moloch's horrid action. *#Ichabod lost his friend Abraham van Brunt, who turned into the Horseman of Death. *#After turning into Death, Abraham confronted Ichabod and seriously wounded him. Later, thanks to Moloch, Abraham becomes the unforgettable nemesis of Ichabod. *#After Ichabod's death, Moloch put his wife into Purgatory and corrupted his son into the Horseman of Death, causing a family conflict that will never completely reversed. *#After Ichabod's resurrection, Moloch commanded Andy Brooks to ally the Horseman and track down the two Witnesses, almost killing them. *Andy Brooks: *Abbie & Jenny Mills: *#The curse that Moloch (very likely) spread on Grace Dixon and her descendants had caused great loss. Grace was burned to death, a Dixon explorer was petrified by a gorgon, Lori Mills committed suicide, Jenny fell into imprisonment, and finally - Abbie's death. *#Moloch's murderous attempt against Mills sisters had already begun when they were children. He was the man behind Mills sisters' pain after Lori Mills' imprisonment. *#After Ichabod's resurrection, Moloch commanded Andy Brooks to ally the Horseman and track down the two Witnesses, almost killing them. *#Moloch trapped Abbie in Purgatory and attempted to harm her. He also chained the sisters' memories in Purgatory as he created his Horseman of War. *Frank Irving and his family: Frank's ordeals are mostly caused by Moloch. For example, Moloch sent his sadistic minion Ancitif to threaten Frank to give in Washington's Bible. He also ordered Henry to take Frank's soul, and therefore he is the key person to make Frank losing sanity and fall under Henry's control after his resurrection. *Benedict Arnold: The creation of the corruptible Tyrian shekels is one of Moloch's plan, including the one coin that corrupted Arnold into a infamous traitor as we know today. *Pied Piper's victims, including numerous British soldiers and child offsprings of Lancaster family. *The Headless Horseman's victims: **Numerous unnamed victims **Ichabod Crane (later revived) **August Corbin **Alfred Knapp **Four Masonic leaders **Benjamin Franklin (altered timeline only) *Joe Corbin: *The Sucubus' victims **Two unnamed victims **Nick Hawley (survived) **Ichabod Crane (survived) *If the apocalypse caused by Moloch succeeded, the Purgatory will rise, and numerous people will be kill or enslave by Moloch. Trivia *Moloch's three demonic forms were portrayed by D.J. Mifflin, Derek Mears and Marti Matulis, respectively. **His child form was portrayed by Grant Springate, and his teenager form was portrayed by Austin Filson. *He is, so far, the darkest and the most vile villain of the whole series. *Moloch is similar to Emperor Palpatine from the the Star Wars Franchise as both are powerful beings, both serve as Bigger Bads in their stories, both control a father of the main character and both are defeated by their own minions. *Moloch is similar with Father, for both of them are creators of their notable minions (the Seven Homunculi to Father and the Four Horsemen to Moloch) yet only see them as tools and does not care for them. *Moloch's death shares similarities to the death of Aerys II Targaryen: Both of them ordered their most loyal minions (Henry Parrish for Moloch; Jaime Lannister for Aerys II) to slay their family members (Katrina Crane for Moloch; Tywin Lannister for Aerys), right before their order enraged their minions and they soon died under their minions' hand without honor. *Moloch's death is also similar to the death of Emperor Palpatine, as well as his corrupting influence and heartless personality. He can be considered to be Palpatine to Henry's Darth Vader. *Moloch not destroying his bitter enemy (Henry) at first and "sparing" him until he has outlived his usefulness happened two times, which both hid shocking truths: *#In Season 1, Moloch ordered Andy and his minions to stop the Headless Horseman from killing Ichabod Crane, much to Ichabod's confusion. It soon turns out to be a evil plot when Moloch grabbed Ichabod into the Purgatory through a mirror, taunting him, "Your death is assured, you and the Second Witness. I touched her soul once. Soon, it will be mine forever, then you will give it to me." What is more shocking, the plan's real purposes soon turn out to be, none other than, both a seperation of the two Witnesses, and a plot in order to make the Horseman of War to take its human form. *#In Season 2, Moloch forcefully ordered Henry to keep Katrina alive, for she was one of the "Hellfire Shards", a chosen vessel. Soon afterwards, Henry made Moloch to possess Katrina, and Moloch almost take his full form successfully. If Moloch rises through this way, Katrina will finally die at his own hand. * The picture of Moloch, which featured on Paradise Lost that Ichabod showed Abbie, might possibly be The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed in Sun (see right), a watercolor painting drawn by William Blake that features the Prime Evil: Satan. **Also, while he does rank as a major demon, it was not Moloch who led the rebellion against Heaven but Lucifer/Satan. **In addition, Paradise Lost is a work of fiction, not a "theological text" as Ichabod states. *Moloch is also similar to Malcom/Peter Pan in Once Upon a Time, for they were both heartless, loveless and ruthless Complete Monsters who has no fathering love. Also, both of their death were caused by their "sons" (Henry for Moloch and Mr. Gold for Malcolm). External links *Moloch on Sleepy Hollow Wiki *Moloch (Sleepy Hollow) on Demon King Wiki Navigation Category:Satanism Category:Demon Category:Horror Villains Category:TV Show Villains Category:Live Action Villains Category:Male Category:Humanoid Category:Satan Category:Evil Creator Category:Lover Stealers Category:Guardians Category:Dark Forms Category:Failure-Intolerant Category:Necromancers Category:Enigmatic Category:Collector of Souls Category:Pure Evil Category:Provoker Category:Corrupting Influence Category:Deal Makers Category:Leader Category:Traitor Category:Monster Master Category:Immortals Category:Homicidal Category:Sleepy Hollow Villains Category:Mastermind Category:Chaotic Evil Category:Betrayed Category:Summoners Category:Abusers Category:Energy Beings Category:Hegemony Category:Fantasy Villains Category:Mythology Villains Category:Theology Villains Category:Brutes Category:Barbarian Category:Deities Category:Possessor Category:Destroyers Category:Criminals Category:Wrathful Category:Torturer Category:Dark Fantasy Villains Category:Posthumous Category:Liars Category:Symbolic Category:Bond Destroyers Category:Control Freaks Category:Arrogant Category:Mentally Ill Category:Power Hungry Category:Mongers Category:Paranormal Category:Parents Category:Successful Category:Faux Affably Evil Category:Cult Leaders Category:Dark Messiah Category:Conspirators Category:Fallen Heroes Category:Gaolers Category:Tyrants Category:Warlords Category:Terrorists Category:Psychopath Category:Archenemy Category:Supervillains Category:Noncorporeal Category:Kidnapper Category:Polluters Category:Omniscient Category:Cheater Category:Monsters Category:Monarchs Category:Misogynists Category:Heretics Category:Brainwashers Category:Hybrids Category:Starvers Category:Defilers Category:Legacy Category:Charismatic Category:Sophisticated Category:Destroyer of Innocence Category:Magic Category:Psychological Abusers Category:Mind-Breakers Category:Slaver Category:Comic Book Villains Category:Deceased Category:Bigger Bads Category:Adaptational Villainy